Car seal



May 27, 1941 H. E. GIBSON ET AL 2,243,375}

CAR SEAL Filed Dec. 5, 1939 EC (L CC 1265mm @AI 111/7. Giibs'an/ .Z. Q. M007ve IN VEN TOR.

ATTORNEYS.

Patented May 27, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT-OFFICE CAR SEAL Horace E. Gibson and Lou Q. Moore, Pueblo, 0010. Application December 5, 1939, Serial No. 307,680

1 Claim.

This invention relates to seals designed for use in sealing car doors, money bags, boxes or similar packages wherein valuables are stored or transported, the primary object of the invention being to provide means for indicating when the contents of the car, box or package supplied with the seal, has been tampered with.

An important object of the invention is to provide a seal which may be stamped from a length of sheet metal material by a single operation of a stamping machine, andthen folded to provide a tongue and a housing through which the tongue is extended, the tongue and housing having interlocking members, to prevent the tongue from being moved through the housing in a reverse direction to unseal the car, box or package.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a seal of this character which may only be removed by destroying or mutilating the seal in such a way as to render the seal inoperative, the damage to the seal being readily detected.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a seal wherein the locking strap of the seal may be drawn into close engagement with the hasp, bag or article with which the seal is used, thereby providing a seal having adjustable features for unlimited use.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein described, may be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring to the drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating a seal constructed in accordance with the invention as positioned around an object.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken longitudinally through the seal.

Figure 3 is an elevational view of the rear side of the seal.

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line L4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a plan View of the blank from which the seal is formed, prior to the bending of the seal for positioning on an object.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the seal comprises a body portion stamped from a length of sheet metal material, and formed to provide a strap section 5 and a substantially wide section 6 at one end of the strap, the wide section 5 being constructed so that when it is folded into shape, it will provide a housing at one end of the strap.

A plurality of tongues or barbs indicated at 'l are stamped from. the strap, and extend outwardly from one side of the strap, as clearly shown by Figure 1 of the drawing. A series of tongues or barbs indicated at 8 are punched from the strap, at a point adjacent to the substantially wide portion 6 of the strap, so that when the strap is bent over the substantially wide portion 6, in the formation of the housing, these tongues or barbs 8, will be completely enclosed in the housing formed by the bending of the wide portion 8 of the strap.

In forming the seal, the strap 5 is bent over the substantially wide portion 6, along the line A, shown in Figure 5 of the drawing. Openings 9 are now punched through the portion of the tongue overlying the central portion of the wide section 6, and the metal adjacent to the openings punched, is forced through the: wide portion 5 in a manner as shown-by Figure 4 of the drawing. This structure secures the strap to the substantially wide portion 6 in such a way that after the tongue has been positioned within the housing of the seal, as shown by Figure 2 of the drawing, it would be impossible to cut the tongue from the wide portion 6 and remove the tongue from the article on which it is secured, and replace the tongue within the housing in a manner to avoid detection.

After the strap 5 has been folded over the substantially wide portion 6 as described, the wide portion is bent along the line B and, is then bent inwardly along the lines C, the free edges of the substantially wide portion 6 are then crimped securing the free edges together, as shown at It] in Figure 4 of the drawing.

From the foregoing it will be seen that due to the construction shown and described, I have provided a seal including a housing at one end of a strap, the housing being open at both ends, so that when the strap has been positioned around a hasp, or an article to which it is to be secured, the free end of the strap may be extended through the housing and drawn taut to securely grip the article with which it is used. It is obvious that as the strap is moved through the housing and drawn into position, the tongues or barbs 1 will move into close engagement with the tongues or barbs 8 with the result that the strap will be securely held within the housing against removal without distorting or destroying the shape of the housing and strap.

Such distortion or damage to the seal would be readily detected by trainmen or an inspector examining the goods sealed with the device.

It might be further stated that because of the construction of the strap, the usual number employed on seals of this character, may be readily positioned or formed on the free end of the strap.

In view of the foregoing detail disclosure, it is believed that a further detail description of the operation and use of the seal, is unnecessary.

What is claimed is:

In a car seal, a flexible metallic strap, one end of the strap being substantially wide and providing lateral flanges, said strap adapted to be bent over the wide end portion, said wide end portion having openings, portions of the strap being punched through said openings and headed, securing the strap and wide portion in overlapped relation with respect to each other, said lateral flanges adapted to be bent over the strap, the ends of the flanges being bent together providing a housing at one end of the strap, a set of tongues formed in that portion of the strap overlapping the wide portion thereof, a set of tongues formed on the strap intermediate the ends of the strap, the sets of tongues extending in opposite directions, and adapted to interlock when the free end of the strap is inserted within the housing, securing the strap within the hous- HORACE E. GIBSON.

LOU Q. MOORE. 

